fatty liver

Hi all,
Last week I went to the doctor for medical check. He made a scan to my stomach; and found that my liver is fatty. He told me fatty liver may not function like normal liver and that reduce its effectiveness. He has little experience to share for sport and supplements;
Two questions come to my mind, and I couldn't find a reliable answer

You can lose the fat on your liver via weight loss. as to the second part about supplements I don't know, but going to quote an article for you.

Can you reverse a fatty liver?

Yes indeed you can and you will find inspiration in the testimonial from Dr Eanelli. Click here for his inspiring testimonial. Conventional or orthodox medicine has no specific therapy or drug treatment to reverse a fatty liver. Indeed many drugs such as cholesterol lowering drugs can exert toxic effects on the liver cells.

The article in the journal Medicine Today encouraged a gradual reduction in weight, which has been shown to improve liver function and reverse liver damage. However, the authors warn against very rapid weight loss from fad diets or radical surgery, which may have a negative impact upon the progression of liver injury. The good news is that gradual weight reduction, with as little as a 5 to 10% loss of initial body weight over 6 months is recommended. In general the treatments discussed in the Medicine Today article were somewhat uninspiring and I am pleased to tell you that in reality there is much that can be done to reverse the condition of fatty liver.

So, fatty liver can be reversed but this can take some time - years in some cases. If you are overweight & find it very difficult to lose the excess weight it is important to look at all the factors relevant to your present weight & state of health.

Apart from diet and nutritional deficiencies, the most important factors are –

You may have a build-up of fat-soluble toxins (such as insecticides & pesticides), drug metabolites or waste products of metabolism in your fatty tissues and liver. This slows down the metabolism of the fatty parts of your body & also over-burdens your liver. This means that the liver burns fat less efficiently. Gentle and regular detoxification is very helpful when trying to lose weight. Drinking plenty of water, raw vegetable juices and Livatone formulas will help the detoxification process.
How long does it take to see results?

The liver has become a fat storage organ rather than a fat burning organ - so this situation must be reversed before actual weight loss can occur. Obviously this will depend on the extent of the fatty liver as to how long this will take. Also be prepared for the fact that you will more than likely hit a 'plateau' - where weight loss will stop or slow right down - this may go on for weeks or a month or two. Don't be discouraged at this time - the fat loss is occurring - but is going from within your liver so you may not see any visible fat loss from the body - stick with it! It is at this time that people will tend to give up thinking that that's it - they won't lose any more - not true! You must be diligent and patient - the symptoms you are experiencing have taken years to develop and cannot be reversed by a couple of weeks of "dieting". Yo Yo dieting is not advisable as the weight lost will return plus more and the metabolism will slow.
My doctors said there is nothing that can be done?

Many doctors still do not make the link between the traditional Western diet and fatty liver. Many simply brush over the condition, telling patients there is nothing that can be done and that it will simply be ‘monitored'. Meanwhile the condition gets worse and worse as the functional liver tissue slowly gets replaced by fat over the years. If left unchecked, a severe inflamed fatty liver can lead to scarring of the liver tissue (cirrhosis).

Is the doctor correct? Can nothing be done? The answer is a resounding ‘NO!"
Thankfully the liver is one of the most resilient organs in the body. It is capable of much self healing if given a chance.

I believe the number of times that I use the cardio shall increase to burn more fat. After I went through the article you've post; I can conclude that I am very limited to type of supplements that I can take every day. But what are the most harmful supplements for the fatty liver??

The problem comes in that many of the drugs and supplements you take have to be processed by the liver, and it has to deal with all the toxins you take in from eating, and the toxins your body produces naturally. They have found several herbal supplements that help the liver regenerate, but the liver does that naturally on its own so I would tend to look at the results carefully. The best advice when it comes to the liver is taking it easy. Avoid supplements if at all possible, even if they are supposedly good for you/your liver.

Going to quote from another article for you, will be a long one I warn you in advance. It's from the article Medications and the liver by Jorge L. Herrera, M.D., FACG Division of Gastroenterology, University of South Alabama College of Medicine Mobile, Alabama.

What are some of the common medications that can cause liver damage?

Probably the best known medication that can damage the liver is acetaminophen, also known as Tylenol®. This medication is widely available without prescription and is present in many of the cold and flu remedies sold in drugstores as well as in prescription pain medications. Most pain medications that are labeled as “non-aspirin” have acetaminophen as its main ingredient.

Acetaminophen, when used as directed, is extremely safe even for people with liver disease. However, taking too much acetaminophen at once, or taking a high dose of acetaminophen continuously over several days can cause damage to the liver. Healthy individuals should not take more than 1,000 mg of acetaminophen per dose, and should not take more than 4,000mg in one day (i.e. maximum of 1,000 mg every 6 hours). In addition, even healthy persons should avoid taking 4,000mg of acetaminophen daily for more than 3 to 5 days. Patients with liver disease should restrict the daily amount of acetaminophen to 2,000mg per day, or even less if severe liver disease is present. Even if you have no liver disease, always use the smallest amount of acetaminophen needed to obtain relief.

People who drink alcoholic beverages regularly are at higher risk of developing severe liver damage from acetaminophen. Drinking alcohol regularly changes the way the liver breaks down certain medications. In the case of acetaminophen, alcohol use leads to accumulation in the liver of a toxic byproduct of acetaminophen that can kill the liver cells. People who drink alcohol regularly should not take acetaminophen or take it rarely if at all.

Can supplements and herbs cause liver damage?

Definitely! Supplements and herbs, despite being “natural” can be toxic to the liver. The production and distribution of these supplements is not regulated as carefully as the production of prescription medications. “Natural” products can be sold with little testing and with no proof of efficacy. Sometimes the herb or supplement itself can cause liver damage. In other cases, impurities or toxins introduced during the preparation of the product may be toxic to the liver. Some of the natural products known to be toxic to the liver include chaparral, comfrey tea, kava, skullcap, and yohimbe, but there are many others. Even vitamin supplements can be harmful if taken in excess. Too much iron or vitamin A can result is significant liver damage.

My mother has PBC and cirrhosis of the liver and autoimmune hepatitis, the key thing all her doctors told her is to CONSULT THEM FIRST BEFORE TAKING ANY MEDICATION. Don't take supplements. Even with her conditions being under control now they won't let her touch any supplements. It might seem extreme but the key is that your liver deals with essentially everything your body takes in, just give it the chance and it will heal itself. Also as an addendum, control your sodium intake as closely as you can. Citing my mother again, poor woman She is restricted to 2000mg of sodium per day. Hope this was of help to you

If you have liver/kidney damage would honestly avoid pretty much all over-the-counter supplements ... especially fat burners. They are not regulated by the FDA and as such there really isn't any reason for them to do studies to prove their safety.

"There's a lot of 5'11 200-225 lbs guys with 10-12% body fat on the Internet. In reality, their "10-12%" body fat is more like 15% body fat or more. Everyone thinks they're on their way to single digit body fat as soon as they see a blurry four-pack in the right lighting. Your final body weight at 5-6% will be a lot less than what you think."

I would avoid ANY alcohol intake until the fat is gone and your enzymes return to normal levels. I don't know if you are a big drinker or not but many times those that are get fatty livers. You cannot live without your liver, just remember that.

good topic... I was diagnosed with fatty liver last year during my check up, and never really thought about it... (was more concerned about my heart then)
I realised that I cant drink as much as I used to, and when I get a hang over, it seems to hit my way harder than last time... so I dont drink regularly, and not to excess either when I do...

i may have fatty liver also, but i am an mma guy, run 5-15ks a week eat clean as ****, do all the right things (i thought) but i do take supplements. Creatine, N.O, Protein, Beta Al, Multi V, Fish Oil, ZMA, BCAA's the only thing i can think of is that one or more of these supps has caused this. But the doc said no they wouldnt do that. I must admit i realized i have been lazy with my water consumption and somedays wasnt even getting a gallon in. I dont know, hope i just have a staunch liver

Are we not the undisputed prodigy or warfare? I fear only the mediocrity that they possess.